The program, which is the only FAA-certified offering of its kind, includes a rigorous combination of high-altitude and motion physiology coursework, hypobaric chamber extreme-altitude hypoxia training, distraction factors exercises, and centrifuge-based G-tolerance conditioning.

While undergoing the high-altitude portion of the program, McGee was trained to recognize the individualized effects of oxygen deprivation by removing his oxygen supply at an equivalent pressure-altitude of 25,000 feet and performing color, dexterity, and cognition tests. McGee’s G-tolerance training, which emphasized both the G-x and G-z components, culminated with a full-strength, full-duration simulated sub-orbital space flight that precisely mimicked the forces experienced by pilots of Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipOne.